The Five Solas: A Cry for Truth! (Part 3 of 5)‏

Hello Friends!

Welcome back to part three of The Five Solas: A Cry for Truth!

This week we will investigate the third Sola known as SOLA CHRISTUS…

The Five Solas: #3 – Sola Christus

By Christ alone is from the Latin Sola Christus. Our salvation is accomplished by the mediatorial work of Jesus Christ the Son of God alone. His sinless life and substitutionary atonement alone are sufficient for our justification and reconciliation to God the Father. It is denied that the gospel is preached if Jesus Christ's substitutionary work is not declared and faith in Him and His work is not solicited for the forgiveness of sins. 

Jesus Christ's life, death and resurrection is chronicled perfectly in the sixty-six books – the Holy Scriptures. Only from Scripture is it possible to derive any knowledge of His saving work. The knowledge of Jesus Christ's redeeming work is made accessible to man in spite of his hardened heart, which views the gospel as " foolishness" 

But the natural man does not receive the things of the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness to him; nor can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned – 1 Corinthians 2:14

Grace produces faith, which brings actual eternal salvation upon the believing sinner. Jesus Christ is glorified whenever someone believes in His redeeming work. His resurrection is often referred to the glorification of His mission on earth.

Thank you for reading! Don’t miss next week’s edition as we investigate Sola #4 – SOLA GRATIA…

May the Lord Jesus Christ continue to bless you with His perfect love, mercy and grace!

Keep looking up and sharing the Gospel while there is still time… Hallelujah and Maranatha – come quickly Lord Jesus!

Blessings!

Shane <><

The First Princess

15 When the turn came for Esther (the young woman Mordecai had adopted, the daughter of his uncle Abihail) to go to the king, she asked for nothing other than what Hegai, the king’s eunuch who was in charge of the harem, suggested. And Esther won the favor of everyone who saw her. Esther 2

A few years ago, after a sleep over at a friend's house, a group of us were sitting at the kitchen table drinking our coffee and nibbling on breakfast.  Somehow, favorite books of the bible came up.  Mine was Acts, another girl's was Romans, another girl was undecided, and one exclaimed, "I love Esther!"

Ok, the Romans I could understand, and I could get the undecided person, but I really didn't get Esther.  It was a forgettable book to me.  I had read it, but I honestly at the time could not even think of what the storyline in Esther was about.  I had lumped it together with the "dry-historical" books of the bible with Chronicles and Kings.

Interesting fact: it is actually typically grouped together in the "historical" books of the bible, which does include Chronicles and Kings, but that's not the point here.

So as I'm slowly making my way through the books of the bible alphabetically (for those of you new here, I have slight OCD tendencies) and Esther was next up.  I wasn't exactly thrilled about it, but I kept remembering the one girl's excitement over the book of Esther and thought that I should at least try to find what she loved so much about it.

I'm only two chapters into the book, and I haven't yet found the love and appreciation for the book.  However, I can say that by reading it slower, with a study guide, I'm understanding it a bit more and I'll retain it much better.

In short, I'm taking it as the first Disney Princess story.  Yep, you heard that right.

To summarize in Disney terms: A king and queen got into a fight.  What the queen did was so upsetting to the king, that he stripped her of her title.  However, he required a queen to take her place.  So, he searched the kingdom for eligible girls, put them through a year of beauty treatments each and had each one presented to him.  Esther was a girl whose parents had died and was being raised by her cousin Mordecai, who treated her as his own child.  Esther was taken to the palace with other women and when the king saw Esther, he immediately was won over by her beauty and she was announced as Queen.

Esther had it easy.  No fighting ice powers she didn't know how to control.  No pricking fingers on spindles.  No poisoned apples.  No losing the ability to speak.  No wicked step-family.  She went through a year-long spa day and came out the other side a queen.  Ta-daaa!

God always has a plan for us.  Sometimes it's really far-fetched from what we're thinking and seeing for ourselves.  I doubt Esther woke up one morning and thought, "I should be queen some day, better start my etiquette lessons."  It was so far beyond what she and Mordecai had envisioned that it came as a huge shock to both of them.

Nothing is impossible, because through God, all things are possible.

Focusing On The Gifts

There are different kinds of gifts, but the same Spirit distributes them.  There are different kinds of service, but the same Lord.  There are different kinds of working, but in all of them and in everyone it is the same God at work.  1 Corinthians 12:4-6

  

This past week, I had a opportunity to teach a class that I somewhat feel was made for me.  I focuses on understanding and developing your strengths.  The basis of the class is very simple.  We are all gifted with certain things that we do  exceedingly well.  The key to personal success lies in our ability to both understand and master use of those strengths.  It always made me focus on one simple question; why did God give us all different strengths (or gifts)?

We are given different strengths so that we can see others as God sees us.  We spend a great deal of our lives trying to focus on the things we are not.  Maybe we are not the smartest person or perhaps we do not look as good as we think we should.  These are stories the world tells us.  However, God does not see us for our imperfections.  He sees us as His children.  This is not to say we are perfect, but instead, we are His greatest creation.  His masterpiece.  God sees the beauty in us all, and when we are indeed connected to Him and utilizing the gifts God has given us, we are a perfect reflection of Him.

God created mankind in His own image (see Genesis 1:27).  We are given gifts as a reminder of His brilliance for all of us to see.  If we as Christians can see people for the things they are rather than focusing on those things they are not, we will have grown spiritually by leaps and bounds.  God wants the best from all of us.  What is stopping you from releasing it?  Do you know the gifts God has given you?  My prayer is that we focus on the gifts God has given each and every one of us.  Amen.

Tues Devo: The pressure washer

Daniel 11:35 “Some of those who have insight will fall, in order to refine, purge and make them pure until the end time; because it is still to come at the appointed time.” (NASB)

2 Corinthians 7:9 “I now rejoice, not that you were made sorrowful, but that you were made sorrowful to the point of repentance; for you were made sorrowful according to the will of God, so that you might not suffer loss in anything through us.” (NASB)

Hello,

This last weekend I used a pressure washer to clean off the deck. It was interesting to watch what it took to clean that deck. If the wood had feelings, it would have hurt! The higher the pressure, the cleaner the wood – but that means more pain. Sometimes, I had to switch directions and go against the grain….not natural and also painful for the wood. But in the end – it looked much better! Sometimes God allows the painful into our lives to get rid of the junk that has built up on us. Sometimes the build up is strong and deep enough that the pressure has to be turned way up, or things have to get flipped around on us (go against the grain). While the process may not be fun – the end result is amazing. We have the opportunity to be what God has created and designed us to be –now isn’t that worth the pressure?

Have a blessed day,

Will Hill